Free
by Whisper's Song
Summary: Love is stronger than death. It can't stop death from happening, but no matter how hard death tries it can't separate people from love. It can't take away our memories either. Life is stronger than death. Ginny x Draco 5 shot. Re-edited/re-posted
1. Apples and Acorns

When someone is in deep thought their surroundings don't really seem to matter to them. Hermione told me that once in response to when I asked her how she could just spend hours on end in the library. It seemed such an impossible feat in my mind. Constantly I was darting from one thing to the next and the idea of anything quiet put me on edge. I simply just wasn't used to the quiet growing up with such a large family. The library and its silence, no matter how many times I indulged Hermione, could never help me keep my focus on my work. She in turn would look at me puzzled as I completed my work in the middle of the common room oblivious to the chaos going on.

I never appreciated silence and never thought I would. Yet here I, Ginny Weasley, was proven completely wrong. Despite the weather dropping into freezing temperatures I didn't care or notice that I wasn't wearing a coat. All I cared about was getting to that tree. Maybe if I spent some time sitting there I could figure out these thoughts that kept pulling me in all different directions. Or at least I hoped that would happen.

My mind was racing over the event that just happened. I traced my lips with my finger for seemed like the hundredth time.

_The lips he had kissed._

* * *

**Free**

**By:** Whisper's Song

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything related to Harry Potter or the brand. JK Rowling does.

* * *

_"Freedom in general may be defined as the absence of obstacles to the realization of desires" - Bertrand Russell_

* * *

It would be a pretty safe bet that by now all of the Wizard community knows my name or at the very least my last name. Surprise no longer covers my face when strangers come up to me to say hello, instead I try to be as warm as I can while still attempting to move along. I know that my hair is what gives me away every time and being the only girl in the family only helps to narrow down who I am. Some faint memories come to mind from when I was younger and I always have to smile at them. When you're young you think it's incredible that people know your name and they're just willing to give you free treats or a chocolate. There's no real comprehension connection that the only reason those events happen are because your brother is friends with the single most famous wizard of all time. You just think it's all fun and games.

When I first came to Hogwarts I was aware that I was somewhat popular. Some people did know my name and boys seemed to come out of nowhere for the opportunity to ask me out or to hang out around me. What more could a pre-teen want? I was in teenage bliss. My brother was best friends with Harry-freaking-Potter and Harry just happened to be my crush. While most girls dreamed of how to get him to know their name he spent practically every summer over at my house. I was convinced that with some time he would notice me the way I noticed him.

Yet as I got older it I started to figure out what was going on. I figured out how I was getting the perks and the attention. The fun started to fade into annoyance because to people I was just a name with famous association. It didn't feel like I was a real person to people and it felt unfair that my siblings had had the chance for people to know who they were as they were older and grown up before Harry. My image to people was that I was the baby of the family who had a tall mountain to climb to carve a piece out for myself.

Then my image changed once again: I'm simply the girl who was dumped by Harry Potter.

* * *

When he had first asked me out it seemed like the natural next step. My patience had paid off and to everyone it seemed like I would be an obvious choice of girlfriend. I was his best friend's sister which was something out of a cliche fairytale and I was someone that could be relied on to not talk to the media. My mother nearly flew over the moon when she found out and with Ron's approval our relationship started its course. Despite Harry's celebrity it was a normal relationship. We did homework and meals together. We walked around the grounds in our free time and spent the holidays together.

Then seemingly out of the blue after nine months the relationship was over. After a seemingly normal final feast of the school year Harry gently let me down. Truly he was a gentleman about it and wanted to make sure I would be alright. It was one of the things I admired about him, his ability to care about others and his loyalty to them. I told him that we would just be friends instead, no hard feelings, and not to hesitate in deciding whether to come over to the house this summer.

No one bothered to wonder why he dumped me. All anyone cared about was that Harry Potter had rejected someone and that took one more person out of the running. People speculated it saying I wasn't good enough because of my family's lack of wealth or that I wasn't pretty enough. Another theory, spread by some idiots, was that I was some love sick crazed stalker of Harry's and had crossed a line or two. That theory was worth a laugh until some people started to believe it and I started getting hit on by some creepy people.

Sure I'm no Cho, but I certainly tried my best. It's a weird feeling when you discover that your significant other is in love with another person. Harry never outright said it, and while I'm not Hermione I'm no dummy. I know Harry made an honest effort with the relationship and tried to ignore his feelings for her, but I knew that when rumors started of Cho being single that I would be put aside. It was no surprise to me when I opened the paper to find a picture of him and her out. Ron, I think, expected me to either pitch a fit or burst into tears at the sight of the picture, but instead I said only that I was very happy for Harry. Ron had to do a double take at me in utter shock. It was as if he were seeing me for the first time as an adult instead of a stuttering eleven year old following closely behind him under his protective shadow.

* * *

Everything went to hell when the war broke out. Suddenly Hogwarts wasn't a haven anymore, but instead, for a time, a silent war zone. No one could have an opinion for fear of retaliation. Families were torn apart with some fleeing the country, some staying behind to fight, and some on the run into hiding. There was this appearance of calm, but just underneath the surface there was this tension that threatened to take over everything.

My brother was missing. Harry was missing. Hermione was missing. My mother and father were gone most of the time with Order business as were Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George. Percy was Merlin knows where until the battle itself. There was no one to rely on except myself and what was left of Dumbledore's Army. It was about survival, waiting for word about Voldemort or about who had died. Then without warning we were called into battle and it in an instant years of preparation were put to the test, leaving Harry victorious.

The aftermath was the hardest. The training was easy. Casting spells and studying dueling techniques were things Hogwarts and Dumbledore's Army had well prepared me for. It was something to take your mind off of reality and it was something you were never really alone while doing. While the fighting was hard it couldn't hold a candle to the aftermath. After all the deceased were identified it became a revolving door of funerals. A hundred goodbyes and a thousand memories that I would spend forever trying to preserve so that I would never forget anyone. We had won, but in a strange way it seemed everyone had lost at the same time. Years had been added onto us in a blink of an eye, and no one could ever be the same.

Hogwarts wasn't completely demolished but it was a shell of its former self. After two years of restoring the castle back to its original state Hogwarts re-opened for students. Along with the new students the old students who were still enrolled, but never graduated, before the war were invited to come back as well. Most of my friends refused to return to complete their schooling at the castle after everything that had occurred and instead transferred. I chose to return though. It wasn't an easy decision I will admit. There are some spots in the castle I can't be near because I know who died in that spot, but I know they would've wanted me to come back here. They died so that none of us would have to live in fear ever again, and I would honor them by graduating from here.

In the end it was determined that I would re-take sixth year completely which I had no problem about. I was glad to unlearn everything from that year and the blatant brainwashing that went on. So after I completed two years I would graduate.

It was never my intention to get into another relationship so soon after the war. Never in my lifetime would I have ever considered that I would willingly spend time with my brother's, Harry's, and Hermione's worst enemy. I hated him as much as I hated anyone involved on Voldemort's side. The mere thought of his family made my skin crawl. His family helped a monster who gave my friends no choice but to be scarred for life or simply killed them. As far as I was concerned once Voldemort fell I truly believed his family would be the last thing I would ever willingly think about.

* * *

Everyone was shocked that Malfoy would return back to Hogwarts including me. All of the children of the surviving Death Eater families had either been arrested or transferred to another school. No one thought Malfoy would dare show his face this side of the pond anytime soon. In return for their testimony Malfoy and his entire family were spared from any charges. It was a generous offer but by then the whole story had come out in the papers including the plot about Dumbledore. Rita Seeker saw a family torn apart by war and immediately made the Malfoy family drama her next meal ticket. Despite its over exaggerated descriptions of the war the facts about the family were surprisingly accurate for her. Although the whole family itself was so all over the place no one could make up something like that if one tried.

In the end I felt pity for Malfoy surprisingly enough. His pampered existence meant he never had a chance to mature properly. He was a spoiled prince to be polite about it. All of his thoughts were carefully manipulated and dictated by what his family expected to upkeep their image. It seemed his life was a never ending hamster wheel of expectations and actual wants constantly fighting one another until Malfoy had to come up with his own defense mechanisms. He put down people in an extreme extent to make himself feel better about his own inadequateness and flaunting money to prove he was worth something because he felt worthless. I think he thought becoming a Death Eater would quiet his doubts about himself, but once again his inability to truly mature came back to bite him. He become a Death Eater without thinking about what that meant. He became trapped in something much bigger than himself. All in all he was a product of his environment for the most part. He wasn't a complete rotten apple after all turns out. It was clear he loved his parents and his parents equally adored him.

It doesn't excuse everything he had ever said or done because he had still chosen to say and do those things with a conscious decision. Yet it helped me understand where those actions and words had come from. My whole life he had been, to me, a very black and white almost villainous caricature. He was bad and we were good. Instead I saw him as a person with just as many gray areas as anyone else.

When Harry didn't attack Malfoy at the first feast and when Malfoy gave a small nod of respect to Harry people understood where they stood: no longer through and through enemies, but not on good terms. They were just respectful and that was the only label that could be applied to them. Everyone should follow their example as such. I simply avoided him at first. It had been almost three years since I had studied any kind of magic and unfortunately was incredibly rusty. Ironically I had turned a bit into Hermione.

Well I_ had_ been avoiding him until I was waiting under a tree on the grounds waiting for my date to appear. Well I assumed he thought it was a date but for me it was simply a good time. My plan was to focus on completing schooling and getting some sort of job to stabilize my life before thinking about a serious relationship, but until then I was still a red blooded female that could still get her kicks once in a while.

After a short time I realized that most likely I had been stood up. I was about to cut my losses and return back to the castle when I heard humming. Nothing makes a person feel dumber then realizing there was another person on the other side of the tree you had been standing in front of for thirty minutes and never knew it. Curious, I looked around the tree to find Draco Malfoy of all people humming while doing his work.

Honestly it felt odd to be around him strangely enough only because I had never been around him alone. There had always been friends or Ron or Harry hovering around close by. Very rarely had he directly spoken to me and I had never spoken to him at all. Certainly I had talked about him though as all the girls did back then. He was still tall, of course. Blonde hair? Still there. Piercing gray eyes you didn't want too focused on you? Absolutely. His trademark smirk was alive and well as he apparently figured out the right answer to a homework problem. In this instance he seemed harmless, like any other student, just sitting there with his parchment in his lap and a book opened on the ground in front of him.

It was starting to grow dark and while Malfoy was comfortable to stay there I wasn't. Silently I looked at him one last time before turning back around and made my way back to the warm safety of the castle.


	2. Blushing and Beau

**Author's Note: **Welcome back! Thank you for all the great reviews and taking the time to add this story to your alerts/favorites! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I don't anything even remotely related to Harry Potter. J.K Rowling owns absolutely everything.

* * *

_"There are only two kinds of freedom in the world; the freedom of the rich and powerful, and the freedom of the artist and the monk who renounces possessions" - Anais Nin_

* * *

A few weeks later I found myself waiting under the tree again but for a different date this time. Hopefully this would end up much better than the previous one. It didn't surprise me that I had ended up under the same tree. The location was a popular choice because it was secluded for those who wanted privacy, and you could see the stars late at night for those who wanted something romantic.

Once again after a generous amount of time I realized I had been stood up again. This was incredibly confusing to me because this had never happened before twice in a row. As I was reaching down to grab my bag to leave I heard that humming as I had before. Could it be? Had lightening really struck twice? Peeking over the side of the tree I once again caught a Malfoy in the wild. Instead of getting lost in gazing at him I was interrupted,

"Are you just going to stand there and look at me?" he asked without looking up from his work. My jaw unhinged a bit in shock. How could he have known I was there? I made sure I was silent for a reason. "Weasley." he said again and when I didn't give a response his grabbed a handful of acorns and threw them in my direction, still not looking at me. The jump I did to avoid them snapped me out of my shock finally.

"H-How did you know I was there?" I nearly stuttered and inwardly cringed at doing so. He smirked and merely shook his head. When I kept staring him down for an answer he sighed and indulged me.

"It was part of standard training. Lesson Number Eight: Always be aware of your surroundings." he explained while moving a finger to make a circle around the area he sat in.

"Good lesson to have," I agreed after a while of trying to figure out what to say in response. A silence fell over us and eventually he sighed again,

"Well go along then you're distracting me from my work." I don't know what it was maybe it was the fact he was incredibly rude or maybe I wanted to make up for my stuttering before, but finally my full senses kicked in and I was myself again.

"It won't make a difference whether you're distracted or not. You're not going to make the highest grade in the graduating class." I informed him and it went without saying who I assumed would beat him. He glared at me and then continued to work. Definitely a determined guy I figured. Obviously smart since he was number two in his class. Hermione had provided that information. Although she always said in public that the top spot wasn't a big deal to her, that it was about the pursuit of knowledge, I knew she coveted that spot. My suspicions were confirmed when I caught her asking McGonagall how many points separated Malfoy from her number one spot. She was flustered at me now having this knowledge, but it made for a good story.

I couldn't help wondering what else could there be to him. It surprised me that I was intrigued by him. Although he had not harmed or killed anyone during the war that still didn't excuse everything that had happened up to that point. Yet he was just as much in a gray area as I was it seemed. Known by a family name and overshadowed by other family members. It caused an unsettling feeling in my stomach. How could I be finding similarities between him and me? We were from two completely different worlds and situations. Eventually he called me out on my staring at him and bluntly asked me what I was looking at once again. I didn't answer him instead I pulled an apple out of my bag and simply set it next to him. After that I just walked away.

I don't know why I gave him that apple, I was very hungry at the time, but I did. Apparently the apple confused him as much as it confused me because the next week he happened to pass me in a hall while giving me a questioning stare. In response I just told him if he had half as much determination as Hermione that he probably hadn't eaten much that day. When he gave me a skeptical look I just shrugged and said a healthy competition for Hermione wouldn't hurt her. I took off while he was stood in shock to hide my own shock at the boldness of my words. _Where had that come from?_

* * *

I expected that to be the end of my encounters with him. It simply wasn't on my agenda to hang out with him. He was a full year higher than me and obviously had much more complex work and lessons. Not to mention we had different houses, friends, well different everything honestly. It made no logical sense that I would run into him unless it were at meals. To him I was barely anybody and I expected in a couple weeks time that we would both forget the incident with little trouble.

Until Professor McGonagall's birthday of all things. Hardly the type of event to spark anything romantic but I suppose the impossible does happen every once in a while. The Great Hall was done up for her birthday with Hermione and I at the head of the planning committee. We had picked out the cake design ourselves. McGonagall was touched at our remembrance and appropriately awarded us house points before we brought out the cake.

While carefully getting the cake to levitate to the right place I noticed the stares of the people on the cake. I couldn't blame them for staring at it was one hell of a cake, but I noticed there was one pair of eyes focused solely on me: _his_.

I realized he was looking at me how I looked at most desserts: cautiously. For example I love chocolate cake but it does nothing for my figure. So whenever I see a piece of chocolate cake I look at it cautiously. If I take one bite I'll want more and more so is it worth getting? It sent a small shiver down my spine. Why are on Earth was he looking at me like that? Especially in such an open setting. Yet I couldn't spend too much time wondering about it when there was a cake on the line. I went on about my duties and it was a nice time that included a small party of Gryffindors after dinner. Everyone loved the cake and I could tell McGonagall appreciated our effort. By the time I had a spare moment to even remember what had happened it appeared that he had already left. While everyone stayed behind to continue well wishing McGonagall I decided it was time to call it a night.

Walking down the corridor back to the common room, my body started to catch up to my brain and I felt heavy with exhaustion. The heels I had worn to keep myself the same height as Hermione for the levitation spell now were painful, and I paused to take them off.

Then I sensed it. To my knowledge, vaguely, he was somewhere behind me. He wasn't the only one to receive training during the war after all. It was no surprise to me when I raised my hand, as a reflex, to catch the apple he threw to me with my back still to him. Turning around to him, I just laughed at his attempt to catch me off guard. My own laugh scared me because I hadn't heard it properly in so long. There had been so much rebuilding to do and so much that required us to focus that it had been a long while since any of us had laughed freely. I noticed the apple was green, _of course_.

"Lesson Number Three: Always know what is behind you. Nothing sucks more than taking a curse in the back." He gave a small smile. "I suppose we made it a bigger priority than you." I observed. Then it was silent. Finally I got impatient enough to call him out. "What's your angle Malfoy?" He gave me a questioning look and I sighed. Now I was _very_ impatient. "You don't follow people for your health. In fact you don't have to follow anyone, if anything people come to you. So you have an angle. What is it?" I demanded again. He chuckled and by that point I was annoyed. I didn't have the time for this and I started to walk away until he started to speak.

"You're an intriguing little thing." he observed. I stopped in my tracks but I refused to look at him. "I never thought I would see the day when a Gryffindor would urge on a Slytherin to beat another Gryffindor." He started to walk to where I was and in return I stared him down.

"I never thought I would see the day when a Gryffindor would have a civil conversation with a Slytherin. It's a damn miracle." He flashed me a smile and I grew suspicious. "You just don't look at a person like you looked at me back there for fun. What do you want Malfoy?"

"The same thing you want." he replied. I laughed at his suggestion.

"That is a very good joke. Ten points to Slytherin for effort." Obviously this had to be some sort of a trick or joke. I caught a look at his face which was set in a serious stance. "Oh Merlin you really are serious." This was real. The prince of Slytherin was hitting on me, or at least that was how it seemed to me. He didn't answer to confirm my statement, but didn't have to. Once again I felt intrigued by him and I tried to ignore my heart's decision to start beating faster.

"What will it be?" he asked while holding out his hand to me. I stood there gaping at him in shock. There was still a part of me that expected some of his cronies to pop out from behind me laughing as they made fun of me. Yet none of this happened. He was really asking me this. There was not going to be any run about discussion or wining and dining. There would only be this.

He was a very attractive man there had never been a doubt about that. A man, is that what we were now, adults? No longer were we boys and girls or students running around as they spent up the last years of freedom from responsibility. We had seen too much for there to be enough innocence left to be categorized that way. The way we were looking at each other certainly wasn't childlike by any standard.

"So what will it be Weasley?" he asked again.

At the moment he was just a man and I was just a woman. There was no history or what would people think, there was just now. All that mattered was what I wanted right now and what I wanted was him. I knew that once I took his hand and followed him into the common room there was no turning back. I could still see the faint light of the Great Hall and the chatter against his cheek and I could also see the dark shadows surrounding the corridor. Without hesitation I placed my hand in his and let him lead me into the shadows.

* * *

We were very much aware of what we had gotten into. There were no illusions or promises we simply were what we were. We had started a 'relationship' if anyone could call it that. We certainly weren't like all of the other couples in the castle to say the least. We didn't do anything publicly such as hand holding or taking walks around the lake. For us it was simply an opportune moment of freedom that popped up when it could.

We didn't talk about our secrets or our life stories. There wasn't much time for it honestly. It was usually a quick couple of hours but usually during the weekends, or maybe a rare weekday, he would clear out the Slytherins so I could spend the night. I had no idea how he did it but I was grateful for it. It didn't hurt that his cleverness, or whatever he did or used, made me to first non-Slytherin person in the common room in centuries. That certainly didn't hurt. Things were so much easier during those times compared to everything else. There were no public images or assumptions and there was no history, there was just then and now. I felt more alive in those small moments than I had in years.

When I thought he had fallen asleep I started to talk about the war and how scared I had been to be fighting so young. How it felt to see friends die before my eyes and how it felt to bury a brother too early. How I didn't want to die, but how surviving the war made me wish I had died sometimes. How I couldn't stand flowers anymore because there had been so many arrangements of them at the funerals I attended. How I hoped I was making people proud with how I was going on with life, but when I really had no idea how to. I didn't know what I was doing half of the time and all I wanted was to get out of this grey area.

It didn't matter to me whether he was listening or not. I didn't care if it ended up that he had. It was just someone there I could tell about all this and they didn't sugarcoat it. He didn't try to comfort me but I was done with hearing the comfort. I was done with people interrupting my stories with words of reassurance when it was obvious they didn't fully believe it themselves.

Sometimes during the night I would leave the safety of his bed curtains and explore the trunk at the foot of it. It only served as another reminder of how different we truly were. All his clothes were pressed and ready to wear. When I looked at the label on the back of each item my eyes bugged out in recognition of the luxury promised with it. Even a simple shirt of his I would wear in his bed was easily two years worth of books. He was the opposite of everything my life had taught me. He had money, influence, and power that he could wield at a moment's notice with no one blinking an eyelash.

It astounded me when I began to find packages, neatly wrapped, on my bed as if they had come out of thin air. Taking a closer look, they were in fact items that I had mentioned liking during my breakfasts in the Great Hall. Usually a few of us at the Gryffiindor table received a catalog or two so we would pass it down the table. Everyone would comment on things that interested them or what looked stupid while having a good time. No one would make a big scene about what they liked, but merely it was a murmur or a head shake. Did he really pay that much attention to me? It was incredible.

At first I believed it would be hard to hide everything from Ron, Harry, Hermione, and well quite frankly the whole school. There was usually a pair of eyes at any given place in the castle and gossip was rampant. Not to mention the gifts that occasionally appeared that there was no way I could've afforded. Eventually it became common place to me surprisingly enough because I seemed to enjoy him as a secret.

There was no such thing as the word _secret_ when it came to my family. The simple fact of actually having one felt deliciously wrong and I knew it shouldn't have felt that way. Most people loathed keeping secrets and were plagued by it at every waking moment. Instead I felt none of those things and with a smile always thought of him affectionately as my best kept secret, even if it was my first one. I knew I should end this dance with him and set my sights on a nice boy from a nice family. Yet the thought of doing so, to separate from Draco permanently, brought tears to my eyes. _Draco_ I mulled over again, when had he become Draco to me instead of Malfoy?

* * *

He wasn't my first kiss nor was he one of the first ten. Yet he was the first to send me into near cardiac arrest with a kiss. He seemed to haunt my days and my nights when he wasn't physically available. It was too late. I had already fallen in way too deep for him and I wracked my brain with the question of why?

Because he made you laugh was the first thought to come to mind. It seemed so little to fall for in the context of everything else, but I hadn't smiled in so long. If he had been listening to my rambling on and still wanted to be around me then, I guess, I felt accepted. Who doesn't like to feel accepted after all? He barely knew anything about me. We had barely anything in common. There was nothing, in theory, to fall for. Yet it seemed we had. Whether we liked it or not it had. We had initially only given each other one piece of each other, but it had taken a life of its own until we had created some sort of a completed puzzle.

It was this dance we seemed to do. We would get a little too close almost to the point where one of us would admit those three little words and then we would have to pull back. We would have to remind ourselves of the situation. He would remind himself I was merely a kid who was too terrified to even admit her own problems. I had to remind myself that with his father alive that he would never publicly do anything with me. He was just using me and I was only allowing it because I was ignoring said problems. Then it went to being strictly a physical relationship until we would find ourselves in a quiet moment. Usually it was while we had run out of mundane things to talk about. One of us would look at the other and it was obvious in their eyes. Those three words screamed out from behind the irises of the both of us. Then it would start all over again.

I wanted to cry, caught up in the mixed emotions of growing love and the confusion of what to do. He told me to think about it one day as I was leaving and kissed me on the forehead. _He told me it was alright if it had to end._

* * *

I woke up late on a Sunday morning which wasn't the biggest surprise for a person like me. It wasn't uncommon for me to wake up around noon with Hermione leaving a muffin on my bedside table in case I missed lunch. Thankfully this time I had woken up in just enough time to get dressed and down to the Great Hall for lunch. Pushing back the curtain I realized an article had been pinned to my bed curtain. Curious, I wondered who had placed it there because it most certainly wasn't Draco. Scanning the headline my face turned to white.

**Lucius Malfoy: Found Dead**

All the details were contained in the article. He was relatively young to be dead, but apparently the combination of years of stress, taking attacks, and fighting in two wars had caught up to him. There appeared to be no signs of foul play which I was grateful for. The death alone would pain Draco deeply and I didn't know if he could've handled his father being murdered. It seemed that he had died peacefully in his sleep instead.

This had obviously been the morning paper and I was bewildered as to who had known to put this where I would see it. Then I remembered Hermione's bed was right next to mine and was in a perfect position to pin an article like that. I should've known she would be the person to figure it out and I was grateful at the same time for her discretion.

It suddenly hit me.

_Draco was free._

As we had both established early on we would never be anything substantial because of his father. Although he wouldn't lay a finger on me or disown Draco or anything of the sort he was still an obstacle. Draco looked up to his father immensely, despite his obvious flaws, and I knew I didn't fit into his father's plan for him. It didn't seem to ever be a viable option for us to be a real couple because we simply assumed he would live a long life. Now all the rules had been ripped out from underneath us and I realized I had a very important decision to make.

* * *

I had never really bothered to put a great deal of effort into my appearance. Part of it was from laziness and part was that the boys I had dated were guys who I had known forever or I had been introduced to at a young age through my brothers. They had already seen me without make up plenty of times and it seemed to not bother them in the slightest. Why change that?

Today was different though. Today I was going to start to grow again. Healing would take much longer but I needed to learn how to grow once again. I had boxed myself into corners with rules after the war ended because I needed to feel safe again. I wanted something normal to help me along the way, but this was real life. It was always going to be scary, safe, normal, abnormal, and full of a kaleidoscope of things that I couldn't just hide away from. It felt a bit awkward to put on make-up but I imagined people got better with practice, which I would need a world of.

Once I walked into that Great Hall I knew my life would change. For better or worse I was going to make a decision and hopefully what I had seen in his eyes had been true. I instantly noticed Hermione's gaze on me and she gave me an encouraging smile while slightly nodding her head in Draco's direction. This surprised me as I had expected her to be disgusted with me and once again I was grateful. My eyes connected with Ron's who waved and motioned me to join them.

Then my eyes connected with Draco's and my heart skipped a beat. A smile came to my face as I realized this was what real love felt like. He was absolutely worth giving a shot.

Ignoring my friends, I took a fortifying breath, walked over to the Slytherin table, and took a seat across from Draco. I could hear the sudden outburst of surprise and disgust from the other students but I kept my eyes on Draco and he returned my smile.

"I think that went well, don't you?"


	3. Conversations and Chaos

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything related to Harry Potter or the brand. JK Rowling does.

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! Thank you for all the reviews, alerts, and favorites! Keep them coming!

* * *

_"Freedom is a package deal - with it comes responsibilities and consequences" - Unknown  
_

* * *

Draco considered my words and seemed to be calculating a figure of some kind. He nodded at certain things that apparently were on his checklist and shook his head at other things, drawing it all out dramatically as if it were the most important decision ever made. After I gave him a look he smirked in return. A moment later he answered my question.

"Well I give it an eight point five out of ten." he replied and to any outside observer it would seem that he was being overtly critical. To me, I knew this to be Draco's teasing on my part. I raised an eyebrow at him in shock and took my own moment of thought. Surely the surprise effect cancelled any "errors" that could've occurred, in my opinion. Draco's scoring still left me puzzled.

"Where did I lose the one point five points?" I finally asked. "Oh do be a dear and tell me what color Ron's face is as well." He looked to my left and after taking a quick look at Ron explained his scoring.

"Red," he reported and I sighed. I knew either Ron's face would be red with anger or white with shock. In fact we both knew that most likely my entire house table was the same color. We expected that in a few moments Ron would be coming over to defend my virtue, and that prospect while touching wasn't exactly exciting. Draco gave me an understanding look but I continued to ask about the scoring. "You're wearing all Gryffindor colors, if you were going to pull something like this, you should've at least worn some green or silver." he smirked. I chuckled, always a Slytherin.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out a green ribbon to put my hair up with. He nodded in approval and I knew he was secretly happy that I had brought a symbol that clearly marked me his. Men, I thought and resisted to roll my eyes at the thought while attempting to put my hair into a ponytail.

"Well you're biased." I pointed out while reaching for a roll. "Now do I have the full points?"

"Absolutely." He took my hand from across the table and kissed it as I probably smiled like an idiot. This act apparently snapped everyone out of their shock and I could hear movement. All of the Slytherins immediately moved as far as they could away from me and several looked at Draco like he had gone bonkers. I could feel several stares at my back and I knew that the pounding of the ground only meant Ron and Harry with Hermione shouting for the both of them to come back. Ron took one look at me and then Draco.

"What the hell," he said in a clear attempt to not yell at me, "are you doing with _him_?" pointing to Draco. I looked to Draco for any indication that he didn't want our relationship publicly announced just yet but he nodded at me encouragingly. Here we go!

"He's my boyfriend." I said simply and with that a scandal was started around all the tables and I imagined that before the day was out Rita Seeker would know. Hell the whole community would know if I wanted to be blunt. The headlines were already created in my mind. _FORBIDDEN FRUIT!: HOW DRACO MALFOY TAINTED A WAR HERO!,_ **A DAUGHTER'S BETRAYAL! WHY SHE BROKE HER FAMILY'S HEART!,** _**A FAMILY ABANDONS THEIR DAUGHTER!**_ It would be trash like most of her writings and completely untrue. While my family wouldn't be too pleased with my relationship they wouldn't abandon me outright. They may shout my ear off and shoot me looks of disappointment and shock, but they wouldn't throw me out on the streets. We may want to strangle each other sometimes, but we stick by each other no matter what. Everyone eventually found in it their hearts to forgive Percy so I felt pretty good about my outcome on the family end.

"He's your what?" he tried to say calmly but it was obvious that he was seething with anger.

"He's. My. Boyfriend." I said a bit slower and clearer for him to process. "Now pass me the butter."

"I am not going to pass you the butter!" he outright shouted at me and I flinched at his anger. At this Draco and Hermione attempted to intervene,

"Don't talk to her like-"

"Shut up Malfoy! You-you-you git!" he stuttered with anger turning to Hermione, "I'm handling this Hermione!" Once again he directed his words to Draco. "What have you done to her?"

"I have done nothing to her!" Draco defended but Ron didn't listen or believe him. Instead he grabbed my shoulders to turn me around to face him completely. "You're lying you ferret." he directed to him. "She wouldn't willingly go out with you unless hell froze over." Carefully he inspected my face as if to see if I were under some kind of charm. I held my tongue and let him frantically look me over to sedate him for the moment.

"It seems hells has frozen over then." Draco pointed out. "Really Weasley. You think I would force someone to date me considering the fact that I am rich, handsome, and have more influence than everyone else in this school combined." Ron continued to ignore him and turned to Hermione.

"Hermione come take a look at her, you'll know what charm he used." She looked at Ron like he was crazy. At his insistence she pushed him off of me and instead took one glance at me.

"She isn't under a charm Ron." she stated and Ron pushed her to look again. "I'm being serious Ron. She isn't under a charm." she lowered her voice so that only those close enough could hear. "Ron she loves him and he loves her. This is real." He looked at me hoping to refute Hermione's words but I only nodded.

"Please try to understand." I implored and I turned away so I didn't have to see his reaction. It would most likely be a combination of shock, hatred, and curiosity. This all couldn't be explained in this moment like he would want. He would get his answers on the train later today. Then came a loud thud and I groaned.

"He fainted didn't he?" I asked Draco, who was trying very hard not to burst into laughter. Suddenly the staff table sprung to life and rushed to where we were to presumably carry Ron off to the Hospital Wing. Hermione asked when we would be able to see him and if he'd be able to make the train. Someone answered that he'd be in and out within the hour with plenty of time to make the train. Instantly I felt pity for Harry because I knew he would have to take on the task of packing Ron's trunk. It was almost ritual that Ron would wait to the last moment possible to do so with the rest of us yelling at him to hurry the hell up. If I had the extra time I would go up and help him. No one should have to go through the jungle of Ron's possessions alone.

"It seems he has." I soon found myself catching Draco's laughter, even though I knew it was completely wrong. When we were done laughing, Draco's eyes shifted to the spot where Ron had been. It was a signal of sorts and I turned around to see Harry still standing behind me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked to him. He had strangely remained silent during the whole commotion. It wasn't a question meant to be rude, but a question of curiosity. A good portion of my thinking process assumed he had followed the teachers out with Ron.

"I'm your friend," he stated, "and I know how much you mean to Ron. I don't want you to get hurt." Apparently this had set off the alpha male nerve in Draco because he flew into the role of protective boyfriend.

"Potter, she's _my_ girlfriend." My mind short circuited for a moment with it being the first time he had called me his girlfriend. He certainly put the emphasis on the word my. Harry looked to me almost at a lost. This was a bit unusual for me to see because he always seemed determined. Even if he didn't have a clue was going to happen he often could make up a plan on the spot to figure it out. Then it hit me: I had rejected Harry Potter. It was a historical moment to some because seemingly to anyone's knowledge no one had done so. I had gone off the course everyone had expected.

"I'm sorry." was all I could say in response. "I may be Ron's sister, but I'm not the girl at the Burrow who blushed at the sight of you. I'm not the girl who fell in love with you. The war changed me as must as it did anyone else. It's time you, Ron, Hermione and everyone else in this bloody school get it." I paused. "I didn't plan on it to be him, honestly. I thought he was someone I would avoid until my last breath you need to know that." Looking back at Draco I couldn't help but smile. "Harry I'm happy. I'm happy for the first time in years, surely you can understand what it's like to only want that." Harry took a moment, and looked from me to Draco and then Draco to me.

"You love her don't you?" he asked Draco. I was taken aback by the question. Draco and I had been together only a couple months and that was a rough estimate. I was sure about my feelings, but I didn't presume to assume his feelings. He was a male after all and it was common knowledge that it usually took much longer than a month for men to start declaring love about a girl.

"Yes." he said quietly. "Yes I do." he said clearer and bit a louder. I felt myself not knowing how to react, as Harry nodded his head, smiling a little.

"Take care of her. All we want is to see her happy, and if you make her...we'll understand someday. It won't be today, and it certainly won't be when Ron gets out of the Hospital Wing...but we will, somehow someway. Just bear with us as we try to figure this out." Draco stood up and surprisingly offered out his hand. Harry hesitated a moment but took Draco's hand to shake it.

I found myself standing and hugging Harry. "Thank you." I said, surprising myself with being able to speak. "That means more than you'll ever know." He returned my hug and then we said goodbye. As he walked off to take care of Ron's things I noticed the last person I needed to address.

"How did you know?" I asked Hermione in complete wonder. "How did you know and me not figure it out?" She smiled at me like she always did when she answered a professor's question correctly.

"When do I ever not know?" she countered and she had an excellent point. If anyone in the school would figure it out it would be her. I should've known that nothing got past her watchful eye. Finally I got to ask her the question I had been dying to ask since I had seen the article.

"Was it obvious?" Hermione shook her head no.

"You weren't. In fact you did a really good job." she lightly laughed. "But I'd come in late from the library on the weekends and notice you weren't in the common room doing your work. Then I'd notice your bed, while the curtains were drawn, had never been slept in. Yet you'd show up to breakfast with a clean uniform and clean hair. That's how I knew it was about a boy. The rest I figured out through body language."

"You're good." I complimented and she brushed it off. "Thank you for not telling the boys." I paused and then continued. "I know that couldn't have been easy for you. I also want you to know, as I told Harry, that I never thought this would happen."

"I know you wouldn't deliberately do something like this to hurt anyone. He's not my first choice for you, honestly, but if you're happy we'll accept it one day like Harry said. We aren't going anywhere. You're family." she promised me and finally I felt relief. My stomach finally had undone all the knots it had gotten itself into this morning. Everything was out in the open and it would be okay. "I should probably go the hospital wing for when Ron wakes up."

"Ah the duties of a girlfriend." She nodded.

"I'll see you on the train. I'll save you two some seats." she offered. I knew it wasn't easy for her to do something so generous, but it meant that she was at least trying.

"Sounds great." I replied and she turned to leave. Sitting back down I started to actually breathe again. "All in all that wasn't as bad as I was expecting."

"We're still alive so what happened is great compared to what I imagined would happen." I smiled.

"You didn't think they would kill you, did you?"

"Never underestimate big brothers when it comes to their sisters." he said as if he had learned this lesson before. It peaked my interest.

"Speaking from experience are we?" It wouldn't have surprised me if it were true. He certainly was no virginal figure by any means and it stood to reason that by being so he would've made some people mad.

"Not at all." he defended but I could read his eyes. They clearly were recalling some event where he had been the intimidated instead of the other way around. I tried to not laugh. "Well at least everyone knows you're mine now." He shifted gears in an obvious attempt to look more manly.

"Typical male." I said rolling my eyes at him while trying to grab what I could of the remaining food. Since I had already packed my trunk I could afford some spare moments to eat in the common room. The drama had taken up the majority, if not all, the lunch time.

"Stereotyping now are we, Weaselette?" he asked, his eyes amused.

"Maybe I am, ferret." I replied with the same amused tone. "Everyone is looking at us, aren't they?" Draco took a moment, and then about five minutes later asked me,

"How many students do you think there are in Hogwarts?"

"Beats me." I answered.

"Well I counted all the people who are currently sitting in the Great Hall, so minus Weasel, Potter, and Granger..." he paused. "Yeah...pretty much everyone is looking at us."

"Are we really that interesting?" I asked, surprised.

"Well this is me we're talking about, my dear." I rolled my eyes.

"Please don't suddenly get the inspiration to go on about your hair." I begged remembering how he explained his hair care ritual to me once when I had simply asked how he had gotten his hair to look so good one day. It had taken a good thirty minutes of explaining complete with demonstration using six different products.

"They're hanging on to our every word." he pointed out. Then I got an idea and very Slytherin one at that.

"Then we might as well give them something to talk about." Draco raised an eyebrow at me. I, then, reached over and grabbed the front of his robes towards me.

And in true form, kissed him.

* * *

"So why did you pick today to suddenly come out with our relationship?" he asked me a little bit later as we were walking towards the train. Chaos, owl feathers, and parchment flew through out the air above the platform. The smell of freedom for a couple weeks made even the most dedicated student smile. Everyone was pushing themselves into the line to board the train for the holiday break or rushing down the aisles to find where friends had saved seats. There were more than a few people who openly gawked at Draco and I's hand holding through the train windows, and while it was slightly uncomfortable it was pretty funny to laugh at their expressions.

Despite the unorganized mess of people there was a less crowded area of people saying goodbye to friends or significant others for the next couple weeks. We decided to walk over to that area, hoping to have less distractions around while talking about this subject. Taking stock of the time we decided to sit on a nearby bench for a few minutes.

"Are you upset that I did?" I asked concerned once we were settled. It was never my intention to make him uncomfortable, but at the same time I didn't regret doing what I had done.

"Not at all." he said quickly, sensing what what I was thinking. I was relieved. "Just surprised. Very surprised, actually. I would've liked some notice." he pointed out.

"Valid point. I could have done that." I agreed. "Although if I told you in advance, it would've been a production." I defended and when Draco tried to deny this I continued, "And you know it." It astounded me the length he would go to for things. Any kind of good news or announcement, in his mind, must be told to the world in the grandest fashion. While I had worked on toning that down I knew he would've insisted on something huge for our relationship announcement. He could only sheepishly shrug in reluctant agreement.

"Why did you though?"

"I know about your father Draco." I said quietly. His expression darkened a touch and his poised composure shell cracked just a little.

"Hermione pinned the article from the morning paper to my bed while I was sleeping today. I knew your father's death would change things either for the better or the worst. We've spent the past couple of months having a relationship while pretending it was just a game instead. I understood why we did that, for the sake of your father, but when that factor was out of the equation I was done pretending. I wasn't going to continue this as a game anymore and I needed to let you know where I stood. I've seen so many friends have casual relationships that just end once the Christmas break comes, and I wanted you to know that I was in this longer than that. I wasn't going to wait." He pulled me in closer for a kiss.

"I'm glad you didn't wait." he admitted. I hugged him as I whispered,

"I'm sorry about your dad. I know he meant so much to you." His head nodded against my shoulder. It didn't surprise me that when we pulled away that his face had returned as it was before: completely unreadable. I felt sad for him that he had to keep up this stiff upper lip facade and I didn't try to hide it from him.

"You're completely too bossy." he said in order to make me smile and to also make himself smile as well. Play fighting was something we had become fans of. Neither of us would actually mean the insults, but it was all about who could last the longest in the fight.

"And you're completely too cocky." I responded.

"Stupid red hair."

"Arrogant prick."

"Weaselette."

"Ferret."

"Lion."

"Snake."

"Merlin, we can't even think of good insults for each other." Draco muttered. I laughed, not at him, but with him. I had softened the ice prince and it was moments like this that I loved. His quick tongue slowed just a bit and it was nice to know I had that effect on him.

"Well who says our original insults were good to being with?" I pointed out and he gave a smile which meant I hadn't wounded his ego too badly.

It was then we both took the time to look around the platform. It was empty.

How did we not know the platform was empty?

"So I guess we have that effect on each other." Draco mused and I smiled.

"Yes I guess we do." I said as we hurried to board the train and Hermione saving our seats.


End file.
